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Friday, February 28, 1997

Patterson votes against concealed gun bill; says will continue effort

By JUAN B. ELIZONDO Jr. Associated Press Writer

AUSTIN (AP) - The sponsor of the law allowing Texans to carry concealed handguns on Thursday voted against his own effort to ease restrictions on where those guns may be carried.

Sen. Jerry Patterson, R-Pasadena, said he could no longer support the bill after two amendments he opposed were added by a subcommittee.

The bill died by a vote of 1-2 in the subcommittee. Patterson and Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, an opponent of the current concealed-carry law, voted against it.

Sen. Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, voted for the bill after the changes were added. She voted for the 1995 law allowing Texans to be licensed to carry concealed handguns but had expressed concerns about Patterson's bill.

Patterson said while the bill has been shot down, his effort to to allow licensed gun owners to carry their weapons in more places isn't dead.

The bill would have lifted a state-imposed ban on concealed guns at churches, most parts of hospitals and amusement parks. Private owners of those places would have been able to initiate their own bans under the law.

The bill also would have put into law a provision from the Texas Constitution that says only the Legislature can regulate the carrying of arms. Patterson said that section would have made clear that gun bans posted by some state agencies and local governments aren't legal.

Amendments to the bill removed both of those provisions.

Under the current law, private businesses may ban guns from their properties. Many local government bodies and state agencies also have banned guns, but Patterson says those bans would not survive a court battle.

As of last week, there were 120,921 Texans licensed to carry concealed guns.

Patterson said his bill was needed to fix parts of the 1995 law.

"There is no blood in the streets, there is no blood in hospitals, there is no blood in churches - and it ain't because churches and hospitals are banned - it's because citizens can behave responsibly. We're either going to respect that or we're not going to change the law at all," Patterson said.

He said other provisions, such as increased mental screening for permit applicants and tougher regulations for some former criminals, also were part of the now-dead bill. It also would have allowed some Texans convicted of felony crimes to carry concealed handguns.

West said harmful sections of the bill outweighed any positive changes.

"I didn't want to see a bill at all," West said.

Mrs. Shapiro said she wants local governments to have control over where concealed guns are allowed.

"I think the government closest to the people is the best. And they know best in their own communities," she said.

Rep. Bill Carter, R-Fort Worth, said the death of the bill in the Senate won't stop the House from acting on a similar measure.

"I think we should be in good shape in the House," Carter said.

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The Senate concealed gun bill is SB204. The House bill is HB461. Send a Letter to the Editor about This Story | Start or Join A Discussion about This Story
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